PeeWee and Plush (3 page)

From time to time I stopped to catch my breath, to listen for sounds, and to sniff for her scent. Finally, I caught a familiar whiff, but just then, I also heard a sound I knew too well. A park attendant was sitting on one of the peculiar motor carts that cut the grass. I'd learned to keep clear of those dangerous vehicles. It could slice off my leg as it was clipping the grass. I followed Plush's scent toward the ever-louder sound. Would she know enough to keep out of its path?

I ran toward the closest bush and heard
a voice calling my name. It was Lexi. “Here I am,” I called, sticking my head out from under the shrubbery.

He dashed under the bush with me. “I was looking for you,” he said. “And where is Plush? Is she still inside your hole?”

“I wish she were,” I shouted out over the noise of the grass-cutter. I told him the events of the past half hour. I even told Lexi how I had accidentally bitten Plush. “I didn't mean to do it,” I told him. “But I had to make her spit out that buttercup.”

Lexi nodded. “I know, I know,” he said. “
Better an empty mouth than a stomach full of pain
.”

Lexi may have said something more, but his words were completely drowned out by the loud roar of the cutting machine. I
shuddered both from the sound and the thought that poor Plush might be under its blade.

As the machine moved away and its sound diminished, Lexi said, “Wait here. I can run faster. I'll find Plush for you.”

He scooted out from under the bush and I remained watching from beneath its branches as he ran. If anyone would find Plush quickly, it was Lexi. It felt good now to rest in the shade of the bush. I was worried about Plush, but I was tired too. I'd spent a lot of energy that morning finding the choicest tidbits for her to eat. I drifted off in an uneasy sleep.

The next thing I knew, I heard Lexi's voice again.

“Wake up, sleepyhead. I've found the lost Plush.”

I rubbed my eyes. What a relief it was to see Plush standing in front of me, safe and sound!

“I wasn't lost,” Plush said, sounding irritated. “I knew exactly where I was.”

“And where was that?” asked Lexi.

“In Central Park, in New York City.”

“True enough,” said Lexi. “But could you have found your way back to PeeWee's hole again?”

“Why would I want to go back there?” Plush asked. “First he bit me. And then he let you come looking for me while he took a nap.”

“Just a minute,” I protested. “I
was
looking for you until Lexi took over. And I didn't mean to bite you. Honest. Please forgive me,” I begged Plush.

“I'll think about it,” she responded.

“How long will it take?” I wanted to know.

“Stop quarreling,” scolded Lexi. “I just saw something delicious to eat. Save your mouths for food and not for angry words.” He ran out from the bush and returned a minute later dragging a round piece of bread with a hole in the middle that had been dropped by a careless human.

“Who gets the hole?” asked Lexi as we all began to nibble on this tasty find.

“Help yourself. It's all yours,” said Plush.

That was the first time I'd heard her make a joke. There was so much about her personality that I had yet to learn. But I guess she had much to learn about me. One can't become the best of friends in just a few hours. Even Lexi and I needed a bit of time to get to really know and appreciate each other.

As far as I knew, Plush and I were the only guinea pigs in all of Central Park. We had to trust and understand each other. Otherwise, how could we have a family together someday?

One good thing came from my biting Plush. She wasn't eager to return to my hole with me. After a morning of trying to get her out into the park, I discovered that now I couldn't get her back into my cozy hideaway.

“Show me the park,” Plush said to Lexi after we finished eating. It stung that she didn't ask me.

“Not now.
An afternoon rest is always best!
”
Lexi told Plush. It was another of his mother's sayings.

“I'll rest tonight,” Plush said. “If you don't want to show me the park, I'll just make my own discoveries.”

I looked at Lexi with alarm. Now that he had found her, we couldn't possibly let her out of our sight.

“Come along,” said Lexi good-naturedly. He led the way, and Plush and I followed. “We'll go to Turtle Pond,” he said, turning and winking at me. Turtle Pond was quite a distance away. Lexi's wink told me he planned to tire Plush out so we could all stop and take a rest en route.

“Turtle Pond?” said Plush eagerly. “There were several turtles in the pet shop where I used to live.”

“I've never seen a turtle here,” said Lexi. “It's just a name, not a creature.”

“Too bad,” said Plush. “Turtles are quite wise and very gentle, unlike some animals I can name. I enjoyed speaking with those in the shop.”

Was that a crack at me? I couldn't tell.

We walked from one bit of protected shrubbery to another. “It's important not to be seen by humans,” Lexi instructed Plush.

“Why? In the pet shop I saw dozens of humans every day. It was a human who cleaned my cage and fed me. Humans were always good to me and none ever hurt me,” she said.

Was that another crack?

“These humans will be surprised to see a
guinea pig in the park. They'll want to catch you and take you away to their home,” Lexi explained patiently.

“Is that bad?” asked Plush. “All guinea pigs want a warm, clean, safe home.”

She's saying my hole is damp and dirty, I thought. How could I have lost her trust so quickly? I felt miserable.

Just then a child's rubber ball came flying through the air and landed inches away from us. We all froze in our spots. Then clever Lexi ran around in a circle near the ball while I pushed Plush under a thick hedge. A moment later two small children, followed by an adult, came to retrieve the ball. We kept still until they turned away.

“I hope I didn't hurt you,” I said to Plush. “I wanted to help you hide quickly.”

“Just keep your paws off me,” she said coolly. “I can hide or not hide as I choose.”

I sighed. To think this day had begun with such joy. Now it was turning into a nightmare.

We walked on toward Turtle Pond. I knew our slow pace was frustrating for Lexi. From time to time he would rush up a tree and greet a cousin or two on a high branch. Then he would make a huge leap and return to us.

“How much farther?” asked Plush.

“We're halfway there,” said Lexi. “Do you want to rest for a bit?” he asked hopefully.

“No,” Plush said firmly. But her small steps grew even smaller as we continued.

To get to Turtle Pond we had to cross a
wide road built for cars traveling through the park. “Keep to the edge under the leaves,” Lexi told Plush. “I'll tell you when it's safe to cross.”

Squirrels are lucky enough to have two choices. They can run quickly across the road, or they can jump above it on tree limbs. But it's
never
safe for a guinea pig to cross a road. We have to wait until there's no traffic and then move as fast as we can. That's why I usually only cross the road very, very early in the morning or very, very late at night when the fewest cars are driving through the park.

Lexi climbed a tree to get a better view. “Wait till I tell you to go,” he called down to us. Plush and I stood ready at the edge
of the road and hid in some tall grass. Suddenly Lexi called out, “Now! Go for it!”

Plush and I raced as fast as we could. We had just made it to the other side when I heard the sound of car tires whizzing past. It would be so easy for us to be beneath them. But thankfully, we weren't. We lay on the grass panting for breath.

“We did it!” I said to Plush. “That was good running you did.”

“Thanks,” she said. And for the first time that day I felt as if we were a team.

“Ready?” Lexi called to us.

I looked at Plush. She seemed exhausted, but I knew she was too proud to admit it. We were very close to Turtle Pond, but I didn't think she could make it. “I need a break,” I shouted to my squirrel friend. “Let's rest here for a few minutes.”

Nearby there was a deep shrub and I urged Plush to hide in its shaded safety with me. She came willingly enough but still made a point of settling down as far away from me as possible. It was better than nothing, I thought.

Lexi stuck his nose under the shrub. “I'll be back in a while,” he said. “Now you know why squirrels like to travel alone.”

By the time Lexi returned, Plush and I felt refreshed by a long nap. The sun was moving westward in the sky, and we could see the feet and legs of many people walking across the area. There seemed to be hundreds and
hundreds of people all heading in the same direction.

“What's going on?” I asked Lexi. In my weeks in the park, I had learned a lot. But there was still so much I didn't know. I'd seen Sunday crowds before, but I'd never seen this many people so late in the day.

“There's an activity tonight over on the Great Lawn,” Lexi reported. “I don't know what it is but all these people carrying so many blankets and bags can only mean one thing: garbage. We'll certainly have a wonderful feast when they all go home.”

“But what can we eat now?” asked Plush. “In the pet shop I could eat pellets whenever I wanted. They might not taste as good as the food here in the park, but they were always available.”

“No problem,” said Lexi. He ran off and within a minute came back holding a couple of seeds. “
Dig, dig, and you'll find something big
,” he told us. These seeds weren't exactly big, but Lexi came back several times with more. They were crunchy like pet shop pellets, but their taste was much more delicious. I looked over at Plush. Her fur was a little disheveled from sleeping in the dirt, but she was still the most beautiful guinea pig in the world.

Rested and full of food, we sat together talking. Lexi told Plush stories about the park. He told her about how we had become friends and said many fine things about me. She seemed especially impressed when Lexi told her that I was the only animal in the entire park who knew how to read. On
another day I might have felt embarrassed hearing so much praise, but now I was glad. I needed all the help I could get to regain Plush's trust and win her affection. And from time to time, I noticed her looking at me with renewed interest.

The sky was still quite light when we began to hear a sound that was unusual in the park. There was human music playing very loudly nearby.

“Oh my heavens!” shrieked Plush, suddenly looking very alert. “That's the overture to
Tosca
.”

“What's that?” I asked.

“
Tosca
. It's an opera by Giacomo Puccini. It's one of my favorites. I love everything by him:
Tosca, La Bohème, Madama Butterfly
. . . . They're all so beautiful.”